Klapisch: Sabathia not like himself

The home runs are coming in a steady stream now, three more from the Brewers on Saturday night, each one giving credence to the possibility there’s something wrong with CC Sabathia’s arm.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

CC Sabathia after giving up his third homer of the game against the Brewers.

It’s no longer unreasonable to think the left-hander has an early-stage injury that may or may not be causing pain – yet. But as one talent evaluator said, Sabathia’s steady loss of velocity and lowered arm angle are signs of a “gathering storm.” It’s not unlike the series of red flags that ultimately resulted in Michael Pineda requiring shoulder surgery in 2012. Pain is always the last symptom.

Sabathia has told the Yankees he feels fine, so many times, in fact, Joe Girardi and his staff have stopped asking. But Pineda was just as vehement about his own health two spring trainings ago, until he finally admitted his arm was killing him.

That’s why team officials are so troubled by what they’re seeing from Sabathia, who was unimpressive once again Saturday. He failed to get out of the sixth inning, handing a one-out, bases-loaded crisis to Dellin Betances. Luckily for Sabathia, and the Yankees, the 6-foot-8 right-hander cleaned up the mess with two quick strikeouts, or else Sabathia could’ve ended up on the wrong side of a blowout.

Sabathia ultimately escaped with a no-decision but did nothing to make the Yankees feel better about the state of his fastball. The left-hander failed to get a swing-and-miss on any of the 52 two- or four-seamers he threw to the Brewers. In fact, Sabathia’s first pitch, an 89-mph four-seamer, was sent screaming over the left field wall by Carlos Gomez, a microcosm of Sabathia’s late-career decline. He left the pitch over the middle of the plate and, as has happened so many times in the last two seasons, was made to pay for it.

Sabathia was beaten twice more in the third inning, on back-to-back homers — on back-to-back pitches, no less – by Jonathan Lucroy and Aramis Ramirez.

More proof that Sabathia is living on the edge, in a world without elite velocity. He still has the smarts and deception with his secondary pitches to survive, and at times, even dominate opposing lineups. But that calm is only an illusion. It feels like the clock is always ticking on the next blowup.

Indeed, after Sabathia allowed a career-worst 28 HRs in 2013, he’s become even more vulnerable in 2014. Before stepping to the mound Saturday, his home run-to-fly ball ratio stood at 21.9 percent, a 50 percent increase from last year and by far the worst in his 14 years in the major leagues. Opponents’ .509 slugging percentage against Sabathia was the second-highest among American League pitchers.

Such a struggle only emphasizes how much the Yankees count on Masahiro Tanaka, and how much their faith in Sabathia has eroded. When the game reached its crossroads-moment in the sixth, Girardi – who would’ve never hesitated to let Sabathia work through a jam in the past – wisely picked Betances.

So where does this leave the Yankees? They’ll be hard-pressed to win 90 games on Tanaka’s back alone; they need Sabathia to be more than invisible. It would be one thing if his fastball would stabilize in the 89-90 mph as it was last year, but according to Fangraphs.com, the veteran has lost 2.5 mph from 2013, and almost 4 mph since 2012. Put Sabathia next to his 2009 edition and you’d hardly recognize him – he was averaging more than 94 mph back then.

That’s why the Yankees are so unsettled, because Sabathia’s trend line suggests there’s a potential health issue lurking. The left-hander might not be hurting enough to admit to an injury, but don’t be surprised if the Yankees respectfully ask him to undergo an MRI. Too many red flags lately. Something has to give.

NEWS ITEM: Study shows Yankees’ shifts hurt more than helps.
There was some interesting research compiled the other day by ESPNNew York.com, which revealed that, for all of Girardi’s moving of his defensive chess pieces this season, the net effect has cost the Yankees three runs that wouldn’t have scored without the shifts.

But don’t expect the manager to even consider returning to more conventional alignments. Girardi, armed with reams of statistical data, is all in. The Yankees are second in the majors in shifts for balls in play.

But if this is the wave of the future, it won’t necessarily be an easy transition. Repositioning batter by batter, sometimes pitch by pitch, can be disorienting for infielders and even pitchers. According to the report, Hiroki Kuroda has asked Girardi not to employ the shift when he’s pitching because it makes him uncomfortable.

But Kuroda is nearing the end of his career, and more and more younger pitchers will eventually consider shifts the norm. It’s part of our data-driven era, which is changing what has traditionally been accepted as a sure-thing base hit – a ground ball whispering through the hole between first and second. More often than not, especially with the Yankees, there’s now an infielder waiting to catch it.

The godfather of shifts, Rays’ manager Joe Maddon, is both flattered and saddened by the evolution.

“They’re exceeding us,” Maddon told ESPN, referring to the Yankees’ defense. “It doesn’t surprise me. It disappoints me. I much preferred when they thought we were nuts, that we were bastardizing the game.”

NEWS ITEM: Jon Hamm hates the Mets.
Yes, it’s true, the lead character of the AMC series, “Mad Men” is the star of the soon-to-be released Disney film, “Million Dollar Arm” which is based on the true story of Indian baseball pitchers Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel, who were discovered in a reality show competition.

Hamm plays American sports agent J.B. Bernstein who goes to India looking for baseball talent. It’s a long way from the hard-drinking/carousing Don Draper in Mad Men, but Hamm has had baseball in his blood since his days growing up in St. Louis.

In fact, he’s still a die-hard Cardinals fans, whose loyalty to the team goes all the way back to the days when the Mets were the enemy in the mid-80s.

“I hated the Mets,” Hamm told a group of baseball writers Friday, part of a press junket for the movie. With a laugh, he said, “I still do.”

Klapisch: Sabathia not like himself

CC Sabathia after giving up his third homer of the game against the Brewers.

By BOB KLAPISCH

RECORD BASEBALL COLUMNIST |

The Record

The home runs are coming in a steady stream now, three more from the Brewers on Saturday night, each one giving credence to the possibility there’s something wrong with CC Sabathia’s arm.

It’s no longer unreasonable to think the left-hander has an early-stage injury that may or may not be causing pain – yet. But as one talent evaluator said, Sabathia’s steady loss of velocity and lowered arm angle are signs of a “gathering storm.” It’s not unlike the series of red flags that ultimately resulted in Michael Pineda requiring shoulder surgery in 2012. Pain is always the last symptom.

Sabathia has told the Yankees he feels fine, so many times, in fact, Joe Girardi and his staff have stopped asking. But Pineda was just as vehement about his own health two spring trainings ago, until he finally admitted his arm was killing him.

That’s why team officials are so troubled by what they’re seeing from Sabathia, who was unimpressive once again Saturday. He failed to get out of the sixth inning, handing a one-out, bases-loaded crisis to Dellin Betances. Luckily for Sabathia, and the Yankees, the 6-foot-8 right-hander cleaned up the mess with two quick strikeouts, or else Sabathia could’ve ended up on the wrong side of a blowout.

Sabathia ultimately escaped with a no-decision but did nothing to make the Yankees feel better about the state of his fastball. The left-hander failed to get a swing-and-miss on any of the 52 two- or four-seamers he threw to the Brewers. In fact, Sabathia’s first pitch, an 89-mph four-seamer, was sent screaming over the left field wall by Carlos Gomez, a microcosm of Sabathia’s late-career decline. He left the pitch over the middle of the plate and, as has happened so many times in the last two seasons, was made to pay for it.

Sabathia was beaten twice more in the third inning, on back-to-back homers — on back-to-back pitches, no less – by Jonathan Lucroy and Aramis Ramirez.

More proof that Sabathia is living on the edge, in a world without elite velocity. He still has the smarts and deception with his secondary pitches to survive, and at times, even dominate opposing lineups. But that calm is only an illusion. It feels like the clock is always ticking on the next blowup.

Indeed, after Sabathia allowed a career-worst 28 HRs in 2013, he’s become even more vulnerable in 2014. Before stepping to the mound Saturday, his home run-to-fly ball ratio stood at 21.9 percent, a 50 percent increase from last year and by far the worst in his 14 years in the major leagues. Opponents’ .509 slugging percentage against Sabathia was the second-highest among American League pitchers.

Such a struggle only emphasizes how much the Yankees count on Masahiro Tanaka, and how much their faith in Sabathia has eroded. When the game reached its crossroads-moment in the sixth, Girardi – who would’ve never hesitated to let Sabathia work through a jam in the past – wisely picked Betances.

So where does this leave the Yankees? They’ll be hard-pressed to win 90 games on Tanaka’s back alone; they need Sabathia to be more than invisible. It would be one thing if his fastball would stabilize in the 89-90 mph as it was last year, but according to Fangraphs.com, the veteran has lost 2.5 mph from 2013, and almost 4 mph since 2012. Put Sabathia next to his 2009 edition and you’d hardly recognize him – he was averaging more than 94 mph back then.

That’s why the Yankees are so unsettled, because Sabathia’s trend line suggests there’s a potential health issue lurking. The left-hander might not be hurting enough to admit to an injury, but don’t be surprised if the Yankees respectfully ask him to undergo an MRI. Too many red flags lately. Something has to give.

NEWS ITEM: Study shows Yankees’ shifts hurt more than helps.
There was some interesting research compiled the other day by ESPNNew York.com, which revealed that, for all of Girardi’s moving of his defensive chess pieces this season, the net effect has cost the Yankees three runs that wouldn’t have scored without the shifts.

But don’t expect the manager to even consider returning to more conventional alignments. Girardi, armed with reams of statistical data, is all in. The Yankees are second in the majors in shifts for balls in play.

But if this is the wave of the future, it won’t necessarily be an easy transition. Repositioning batter by batter, sometimes pitch by pitch, can be disorienting for infielders and even pitchers. According to the report, Hiroki Kuroda has asked Girardi not to employ the shift when he’s pitching because it makes him uncomfortable.

But Kuroda is nearing the end of his career, and more and more younger pitchers will eventually consider shifts the norm. It’s part of our data-driven era, which is changing what has traditionally been accepted as a sure-thing base hit – a ground ball whispering through the hole between first and second. More often than not, especially with the Yankees, there’s now an infielder waiting to catch it.

The godfather of shifts, Rays’ manager Joe Maddon, is both flattered and saddened by the evolution.

“They’re exceeding us,” Maddon told ESPN, referring to the Yankees’ defense. “It doesn’t surprise me. It disappoints me. I much preferred when they thought we were nuts, that we were bastardizing the game.”

NEWS ITEM: Jon Hamm hates the Mets.
Yes, it’s true, the lead character of the AMC series, “Mad Men” is the star of the soon-to-be released Disney film, “Million Dollar Arm” which is based on the true story of Indian baseball pitchers Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel, who were discovered in a reality show competition.

Hamm plays American sports agent J.B. Bernstein who goes to India looking for baseball talent. It’s a long way from the hard-drinking/carousing Don Draper in Mad Men, but Hamm has had baseball in his blood since his days growing up in St. Louis.

In fact, he’s still a die-hard Cardinals fans, whose loyalty to the team goes all the way back to the days when the Mets were the enemy in the mid-80s.

“I hated the Mets,” Hamm told a group of baseball writers Friday, part of a press junket for the movie. With a laugh, he said, “I still do.”